Let the music take control
UMFM DJ does it for love of the music
Steve Bohrn Staff
Jeff Friesen has a love of music and he isn’t afraid to show it. The host of The New Decay, a Friday evening show that airs on UMFM, Friesen makes sure to feature music from just about every genre. Throughout his life, he has had a deep relationship with music, and The New Decay is Friesen’s latest attempt to further that relationship.
“I love playing music and that is what my show is all about. The music takes centre stage,” said Friesen.
Friesen grew up in Alberta and attended Canadian Mennonite University in Winnipeg, where he earned his BA in music, as well as a bachelor of theology. He got his start at the station shortly after graduation in 2000 and started on the Alberta report, a show that dealt with life on the prairies. He and co-host Kristen played music that was a blend of rock and folk and everything in between.
Friesen decided to start his own show after he realised that he and his co-host were growing farther apart musically.
“The Alberta Report was a good show to start on. But with our music tastes going in opposite directions, we found it hard to find similarities,” said the host. “But now with The New Decay, my very own show, I can play all the music I want to play. It gives me more freedom.”
The music on The New Decay is best described as diverse. Friesen blends the old with the new, the more mainstream with the completely unheard of. He combines apparent randomness with a certain continuity from week to week and show to show to give his program that unique feel.
The show’s name originates from a Destroyer song rooted in neo-Marxist philosophy, which talks about the importance of music pointing to new possibilities and how old music decays to give way to new music. It’s a suitable title for the show, as Friesen tries to incorporate as many of the latest songs and styles as possible each week.
But at the same time, Friesen maintains that music should not take itself too seriously.
“We can learn a lot from the music but we can’t learn everything,” said the host.
The New Decay has also helped Friesen find his niche.
“I don’t want to be just another generic indie-rock kid,” he said. “I want to make my own identity, and that is The New Decay.”
Tune in to The New Decay every Friday afternoon between 2 p.m. and 3 p.m..
